The Washington critic., 1887-06-09
TOPICS OF THE DAY.

n is the p0ssessOr OF the hand-Cuifs worn
by John Brown at the time of his exc.
cution, December 2, 1853; also of two
triangular pigs of lead which were
buried by Brown near the mouth of
the cave which he made his rendezvous
and hiding place on the Maryland side
g of the Potomac RIVER, opposite Har.
per's Ferry, and from which place he
made his descent on the arsenal. This
lead, says the Harrisburg Telegraph,
was found where It had lain for thirty
years by little girl, Florence May
Thompson, while digging for daisy
roots. Encountering the metal while
digging, she called attention to her dis.
covery, further search was made, and
three piles Of lead weighing 100 pounds,
were unearthed OF these, two pigs
have been obtained by Mr.. Comfort
1t Is thought Ossawatomie obtained the
lead in the mines In Missouri; that 1t
was run in rude molds made In the
sand, and transported thence to the
cave, to be used In the opera.
tions against Iarper's Ferry. The
handouts were obtained at the
; time of the execution of Ossawatomie
by Virginian, who bequeathed them
TO his daughter. She had frequently
been offered $500 for them, as is stated
In the correspondence Mr.. Comfort
had about them, but always refused to
sell. Finally she yielded, and Mr..
Comfort obtained the coveted prize.
:, They are of iron, stoutly and clumsily
made, and covered with rust. They
are connected with swivel and two
links, and locked with screw bolt,
and MS compared with cuffs of the
present day, they are of the most
primitive character.
~.
"a. II. s. d." In recent Washing.
ton letter to the Minneapolis Tribune,
relates the following romance of the
, late National Drill: During one of the
sudden and terrific storms which
seemed to burst directly over the en-.
campment, soldier doing guard duty
stuck to his post as If he were ON
picket before watchful enemy. The
lightning's flashes, the thunder's roar
and the flooding torrents from above
failed TO make him finch. When re.
lieved he imprudently rolled himself
up In his blanket and fell asleep in his
drenched garments. When he awoke
in the morning 1t was to find that he
could hardly move, and was unable to
speak above whisper, The attend.
ing physician pronounced his case
desperate one-there was barely one
chance In thousand for life--pneu.
monia had already set In. II he could
be taken to private house and care.
fully nursed he might recover. But
fhe was poor and stranger. Who
would take him in and care
for him? 4 carriage drove up
in front of the tent where
the sick man lay, and plainly dressed
young lady asked If there was any one
within who needed special attention.
In shorter time than | can write 1t
this angel of mercy had an impromptu
bed made In the carriage and the sick
one placed upon it, Two strong men
were detailed to sit in the carriage and
accompany him to the home of the
young lady, she riding on the box
with the driver, He is there now,
somewhat better, but has little chance
, of recovery. In his delrium he called
piteously for mother" and then,
with tears rolling down his checks,
and his manly bosom throbbing with
emotion. he cried out, "but she's too
poor to comel" In half an hours
time message went speeding over the
wires, "Your boy is very sick. Come
at once. Have sent you order for
: moneyby telegraph to defray expenses.
The mother Is soon with her boy, and
nothing that money can purchase or q
luxuriant home afford, is withheld
10 make him comfortable.
Nv
The Joy of the late Ben: Pcrley
Poore, says Gath" was in keeping up
little country place near Newbury
port, Mass. He lived on this place
throughout the summer and fall, or be-
tween the sessions of Congress, and
though the land was probably stony
and green he managed to draw consid.
cradle sums from it by keeping his eye
on agricultural societies and their
premiums. On several occasions b
look the first prize for planting out
forest trees. He told me that trees got
out of the woods were good deal
more likely to live than those taken
from the nursery. In one particular
year, not long ago, he got 81 100 from
his apples. He used his farm both
for literature and for crops, TAX.
= ing a Typewriter there for the
summer, he put In order his scrap
books and autographs, and have no
doubt that his collection will be of
some value If It comes to be sold. He
maintained seven horses, had the tastes
of q country gentleman, aud, therefore,
lived two lives. One In the newspapers
and public offices and the other In the
country. Had he started at the coun
try life first and kept at II longer, his
kidneys would probably have held out
better, But eating good, big dinners
with mtn like Sumuer, Anthony and
Hooper may have impaired his vital
organs, and so, at last, after several
warnings, he dropped oil into q kind OF
pleasant sleep and died almost without
pain.
IT is fact, says the Cincinnati
Commercial Gazette, that General
William IL. Lytle had on when he fell
Jat Chickamauga a pair of new black
kid gloves. One OF the Confederate
officers, who knew him well and saw
him within few minutes after his
death, relates the fact Another Incl,
dent of the death of Lytle is that he
had cigar in his mouth, one of "A
handful that had been given him by
Major Bond of Rosecrans s,aif, The
gallant Lytle was In the thick of the
storm and knew 1t, and handled his
brigade with the greatest intelligence
until hls death. He had refused to dis